Sunshine cannot bleach the snow
by Curione
Summary: 'Sunshine cannot bleach the snow, Nor time unmake what poets know. Have you eyes to find the five Which five hundred did survive' - R.W. Emerson -


Outside, the sky was grey with only the hint of blue. Small particles of white drifted lazily across the sky until they came to rest, covering the ground with a thin blanket of what looked like snow.

The machine was the only thing working in the room. It stood, solid and whole, in a place where everything else was broken. Rubble was scattered across the floor, fallen from the ceiling and walls like crumbs from a cookie.

Evidence of a life lived stood on dusty tables and shelves like relics in a museum. The everyday cutlery and crockery on a rusting drying rack over a rusting sink. The more fancy ones leaned against their glass cabinet prison as if yearning for freedom that would break their pretty faces. An embroidered couch slouching at one side, the threads once magnificent colour now faded to greys and whites. Cracked picture frames from where they fell from the wall, the thousand words they contained now a mere blank piece of paper.

It would been an interesting exhibition - to see the leftovers a person's life and guess the kind of person they were. Except now, there was no one to see such an exhibition.

The world was dead after all.

In the corner, the machine beeped. Once, twice, three times. Then the door slid open, a gush of cool air rushing out as if in excitement, revealing inside, a likeness of a lady frozen stiff in ice.

Then, the likeness took in a breath. It started from the roots of her hair, and with but the sound of what sounded like the whispers of glass shattering, colour flooded through her, rendering her a living maid.

It took a few unsteady steps and a steadying hand on the nearest crumbling wall, but the lady managed to climb out of the machine. And when she did, her blue eyes took in her surroundings with no small measure of confusion.

"...Elsa?"

There was no answer.

She stood there for a while, until it came to her that she should probably look around. But all she saw, with each depressing step, were the remnants of a life together, and no sight of the person that she had lived it with.

Then a glimmer caught the corner of her eye, and rushing over, she snatched up the piece of cloth, dusting it off with shaking hands.

She'd know it from anywhere. It was Elsa's cape of crystal snow. She didn't wear it much the last time they'd been together. But once in a while, on special days, she would pull Anna into her arms, lying on the ground and wrap them both in it. Then, they would pretend.

She stood there for the longest while, fingers caressing the surprisingly soft material. Then finally she lay the cape out onto the ground, and lying down, she curled herself into it, closing her eyes.

She remembered. 

* * *

_The first time she opened her eyes, it wasn't any kind of pleasant. Warm air flooded her lungs, causing the frost particles lodged there to fly, scratching their way up her gullet and out through her mouth and nostrils. Her legs, stiff and weak from the lack of movement collapsed on her, and her body, sensitive from the cold, sent painful shockwaves when her knees met the ground._

_"Ow, ow, ow, ow."_

_"Oh, no. Anna? Anna? Are you okay?"_

_Warm arms encircled her, pulling her upright. She knew that voice, she'd recognize it anywhere._

_"Elsa?"_

_"Oh... Anna. You're alive. You're okay. Thank the heavens, you're okay."_

_"Okay, Elsa, squeezing a little too tight. Oh! Oh, hey, why are you crying? Elsa?"_

_"I'm so sorry, Anna. So, so sorry."_

* * *

_Anna stared at the cup she held in her hands. It was so different - foreign, even though it was just a cup. It was made of some kind of flimsy material that, even though the liquid poured inside was steaming hot, Anna could cradle it in her hands without them getting burned._

_In fact, everything in the place was odd. She was told to wait here in this 'pantry' while Elsa 'dealt with a few things first'. Which was odd since well, it was normally pretty rude to ask guests to wait in a storage cupboard. But then, this pantry looked more like the taverns she and Kristoff sometimes sneaked out of the castle to visit. Only, everything seemed to made of metal or this strange material that was shiny and yet didn't feel like anything Anna had ever felt before. There were also a lot of strange-looking contraptions on the shelves and countertops. Well, she supposed Elsa would explain once she got here._

_"Hey."_

_Anna looked to the door and smiled. The person who coined the phrase 'to speak of the devil' really knew what they were saying. "Oh, hey, Elsa. Looks like you have quite a bit of explaining to do, huh?"_

_The smile that grace Elsa's lips was sad. It reminded Anna of a smile that she never wanted to see on Elsa's face again. "Yeah, I guess I do, huh?"_

_"So... that earthquake destroyed the whole of Arendelle?" _

_"Yes, along with the avalanche and tsunami that it triggered."_

_"And you managed to save me by freezing me into an ice statue?"_

_"Well, yeah. That's the gist of it."_

_"And you didn't manage to save anyone else."_

_Elsa fidgeted, "I'm sorry, Anna. I tried to get to Kristoff at least but he was on the other end of the room and I got knocked out-"_

_"And it's been five hundred years since then."_

_"Huh? Yeah, well, give or take a few years."_

_"And in that hundred years you built up an scientific empire, whatever _that_ means."_

_"Well, yes. I was trying to find a way to revert you back to normal, and I realized I needed more resources to do so, and one thing kind of led to another." _

_"But you look exactly the same as you did last I remember."_

_"Well, it has something to do with my powers we think. I don't age at the same time normal humans do."_

_"Huh." Anna took a moment to take that all in. She took in a deep breath. "Cool."_

_Elsa stared. "Is that... all you have to say? Cool?"_

_Anna frowned, "Well. Not really. I do have one other question."_

_Elsa tensed, "what is it?"_

_"Well..." Anna looked Elsa up and down. "Thing is... don't take this the wrong way... but why are you wearing guys clothes?"_

_A long pause. Then, "I... what?"_

_"You know. Guy clothes! Those are pants you're wearing aren't they? I mean, it's not like you don't look good in them. Kind of hot actually, but why? Is it some sort of weird future thing where girls are wearing pants? Oh wait! Does that mean the guys now all wear skirts? Hmm... that'd be kind of interesting to see... Hey! Wait! Why are you laughing at me? What's so funny?! Elsa!"_

_But there was a smile on Anna's face as well, and soon, she joined her sister in laughing._

* * *

_Anna didn't notice it at first. Being in a new world entirely with so many things to discover sort of took up your attention span quite a bit. The first time she noticed anything strange was a good month down the road and she was finally beginning to feel like she belonged in this strange new world._

_"Elsa! Hey!" Anna did like she usually did, interrupting her sister in the middle of her work, spinning Elsa around in that black office leather chair of hers before plopping into her lap. "Look what I brought back! It's a snow globe!"_

_Elsa as usual, took it in good humour, pushing the offered item away slightly so that she could actually look at it rather than see just a blur of glass and white. "Huh, 'Penguins on Ice'. Classy. That's all you got from the zoo?" _

_"Yep. There were other 'snow globes'. Except they didn't have snow inside them. It was all plastic leaves and stuff, which is weird since they're called snow globes so they should have snow inside them, not leaves. This was the only one that actually had snow inside."_

_Well, that wasn't true exactly. The one with reindeer inside had snow too, but Anna thought that it might have been treading a bit on dangerous ground, even if the reindeer had looked nothing like Sven. "Anyway, Anderson liked this one better anyway. Who knew that such a big guy could be a softie for cute animals. Isn't that right, Anderson?"_

_Anna turned to look at the door where a man dressed in a suit was panting heavily against the doorframe. When he noticed both Anna and Elsa looking at him, he quickly straightened up, trying to rearrange his attire into its usual neat appearance and failing. "Miss Anna! You should really stop running around so much! And you shouldn't bother Miss Elsa right now. She has a lot of work to do!"_

_Anderson was the man who helped Elsa run her company. He was supposedly vice-president, but somehow, his duties ran more along the lines of butler and more recently, Anna-damage-controller. He was normally a very composed, prim and proper man, but apparently, Anna being herself got him easily flustered. And when he was flustered, it was kind of adorable. He even reminded her a little of Kristoff when he was like that, except with black hair and sunglasses. Anna would admit that she bullied Anderson a little sometimes to get a rise out of him on purpose. But it usually didn't do much harm, and it usually made Elsa giggle as well._

_"Aw, but I was just showing Elsa the snow globe we bought! Anyway, Elsa actually really likes my interruptions because work is really, really boring. Isn't it, Elsa?"_

_It was at the corner of her eye, turning back to look at her sister, that she spotted that look. It was a look that she'd never really seen on Elsa's face before - a sort of perplexed, sad and yet troubled look. But it was gone by the time she had properly turned to face Elsa. Instead, what was left was Elsa's usual 'yes, I'm smiling but I'm humouring you' look. "Yeah, yeah. I hate my work and loveeeeeee my trouble-making, clumsy and boorish sister so, so, sooooooooo much."_

_"Hey! Who are you calling boorish!"_

_"Okay, maybe not boorish. Ogre-ish maybe?"_

_"Elsa!"_

* * *

_The exchange ended like it usually did, with Anderson dragging Anna out so that Elsa could concentrate on work. But somehow, that incident stayed on Anna's mind, long after it was over._

_Maybe Anna wasn't too wrong to dwell on that incident though, because as the weeks passed by, Anna was beginning to feel as if Elsa was pushing her away. At first Anna thought that maybe Elsa just needed some time alone. She got like that sometimes, and Anna was fine with that. Everyone needed a little privacy, her sister most of all, having spent all that time alone had made it somewhat habit for her. But the weeks dragged into months, and it got so bad that even Anderson was starting to notice it._

_"This is odd." He commented one day while they were in a taxi on their way to and ice-sculpture exhibition. _

_"Hmm, what is?" Anna looked up from looking out at the window. She had to say she was a little disappointed when Anderson, rather than Elsa showed up to pick her up from the lobby. Elsa was busy. An emergency meeting of some sorts._

_"Just..." Anderson hesitated. "It's just that Miss Elsa was looking forward so much to going to this exhibition with you. She took such pains to clear her schedule for today, and then she suddenly has an emergency meeting? It's more than a little odd, especially considering that your sister can be even more stubborn than you when it comes down to it. She could have cancelled this meeting easily, or at the very least have me hold it instead."_

_Anderson paused, then said a little sheepishly. "Sorry, please don't tell Miss Elsa I said that. Anyway, it's not my place to say."_

_"No, it's okay Anderson. That's Elsa all over," Anna bit her lip. "It _is_ weird. It's as if... it's as if..."_

_"As if what?"_

_"...Mr Taxi Driver! Could you turn the car around?"_

_"Miss Anna?!"_

_"We're going back. I need to talk to my sister."_

* * *

_"Elsa! What do you think you're doing, pushing me and Anderson together?"_

_Ten heads turned to stare at her. But Anna didn't really care. She was never one for propriety after all. _

_"Anna... what? I'm in the middle of a meeting."_

_"And I would normally not interrupt, but this is important." Ignoring the gaping stares, she continued to walk forward. "Elsa, are you trying to set me and Anderson together?"_

_"What? No, no. I'm not." But Elsa couldn't meet Anna's eye. And for Anna, that was more than enough confirmation for it to be true. _

_"Really? Then what's with always suggesting places that me and Anderson could go to? And then always getting us to attend functions and parties together. And then there was today - you were so looking forward to attending that exhibition. But then suddenly, you just gave it up to let Anderson go?"_

_"You're over thinking things-"_

_"Normally, that would be true. But this time, even Anderson feels that something is fishy. Come on, Elsa. What's up? Why are you pushing me away again? Did I do something wrong?"_

_"No!"_

_"Then what?!"_

_Elsa was about to say something, but then realized that there were nine other people in the room with her that she didn't really want to lose her composure in front of. Gathering herself again, she turned her attention to the board members and apologized. "Excuse me, I'll be right back. Anna, let's go to my office where we can speak privately."_

_Maybe once she would have protested, but she was a little bit wiser than she once was. Although Elsa had a much better control on her powers nowadays, it still wasn't a good idea to push her too much._

_"So, we're at your office now. Can you tell me why you've been pushing me and Anderson together?"_

_Elsa sighed, "You really don't know how to mince your words, don't you?"_

_"So, it's true."_

_"Yes... okay. You caught me. I am trying to set you and Anderson up together."_

_"But why?"_

_"Well, the two of you actually look pretty good togeth-"_

_"No, Elsa. __**Why.**_ _Even if you were trying to set us up together, there wasn't any need to estrange yourself from us. Anyway, it's not like I need your help. If I want to get a guy, then I can get him myself. I got the first two myself anyway."_

_"Technically, Hans was using you to get after the throne-"_

_"Not the point, Elsa."_

_Elsa took in a deep breath. "I..."_

_"Yes?" _

_"I just..." Elsa slowly let out the breath she held. She hunched over, wrapping her arms around herself as if trying as much of herself as possible. "I'm not aging, Anna."_

_Anna paused. "Yes, we've established that the first thing I woke up."_

_"Yes, but _you_ are."_

_"...Oh."_

_"Yes." Elsa had a painful smile on her face. "I... I nearly lost you twice, Anna. I don't think I could take it a third time. Although this time, I don't think I have a choice."_

_"So you... tried to distance yourself? Tried to make me start a life with Anderson? One that didn't involve you?"_

_"Yeah... pretty much. Didn't seem to work though." _

_"Well obviously it wouldn't."_

_"Why not?"_

_"Well, for one thing, Anderson already has someone else he likes. Nothing to do with either of us, of course. But I believe the receptionist on the first floor is about to find her ring finger a lot heavier on Monday."_

_"...Oh."_

_"And more importantly, it's also because Anderson's not the one I want to spend the rest of my life with, however short or long it is!"_

_Silence._

_"Seriously, Elsa. What were you thinking? I nearly lost you twice as well and I even got frozen into a statue the second time to keep you. What makes you think this time will be anything different? And you know how stubborn I am."_

_"But..."_

_"No buts, Elsa. I'm not going to let you do this again. You're going to stay in my life, whether you like it or not." Anna sighed, a rueful smile on her face as she moved forward, pulling her sister into a hug. "It's alright. We'll figure it out. One way or another."_

_It was hesitant, as if Elsa didn't even dare to grasp onto the hope for fear that it would go awry. But after a long while, she finally hugged Anna back. "Yeah... I guess we will."_

* * *

Anna smiled a little, her eyes drifting to the machine which she had come out of. "And we did, didn't we, Elsa?"

* * *

_"So this 'machine' you're building. It's supposed to freeze me?"_

_"Essentially, yes."_

_"Hmm... but why can't you just freeze me and then unfreeze me like you did the first time?" _

_"That first time was an accident. I don't think I could manage that again. And anyway, the machine will still operate on my powers. It'll just... give them a little boost. And allow me to control them better. It'll also make unfreezing you a lot easier."_

_"Huh." Anna sighed, draping her arm over her sister's shoulder. "Okay, okay. Very impressive. I think you did plenty of work today already. Come on, let's go get dinner!"_

_"Anna. The faster I get this done, the better."_

_"I know, but hey, all work and no play makes Elsa a boring sister!"_

_Elsa sighed, giving Anna a look. "Alright, alright. Geez, I'm so whipped!"_

_"We'd have to be married before you can call yourself that."_

_"Anna!"_

_"So it's finally complete."_

_"Yes," Elsa grinned. "Even with all your interruptions, dinner dates and disastrous distractions, I finally got the machine done." _

_Anna rolled her eyes. "You'd have worked yourself to the bone if I didn't. Anyway, the point of all this research was so you could spend more time with me. So if you wasted all your time on research now... kind of defeats the point, doesn't it?"_

_Elsa smiled, then looked up where the machine hummed, ready to be used. "You know, we could do with a bit more testing. Anderson said he didn't mind being the first human test subject."_

_"Aw, he just wants to spoil my fun!" Anna pulled a face as if it was really the case. "That or he wants the title as first human test subject for the awesome Elsa-powered freezing machine, which is rightfully mine and I won't allow him to take that away from me!"_

_But of course, the real truth of the matter was much grimmer: there was no way to tell if Elsa's power would work the same way on people other than Anna. The object and animal test subjects they had all froze easily enough, but unfreezing them had proved unsuccessful so far. The only successful test had been the one done with a lock of Anna's hair. No one had known why. It might have been from the fact that Anna had 'defrosted' herself once before, as they had jokingly coined it. Or it might have been that the machine was faulty and the hair thing was just a lucky chance. Whatever it was, Anna wasn't going to let someone else take her place, no matter what the risks were. _

_"Anyway," Anna locked arms with her sister, leading Elsa away from the machine. "Anderson's wife will probably kill us if we allow him to try. Besides, it's not like I'm getting any younger."_

_It had been five years since Elsa had first awoken Anna, pulling her into this strange new world. Anna had matured a little, her face growing a little more lined, figure more womanly. But Elsa had remained exactly the same as she always had._

_"Alright," Elsa let out a huge sigh. "You're probably right, but let's talk this through more tomorrow. Tonight, we celebrate!"_

_Anna laughed, letting out a loud whoop. "Now that sounds more like it!"_

* * *

_"So, this will only be a trial run. Just maybe a few months, or a year. Then we'll try to unfreeze you." _

_"Yes, yes, worry-wart. I got it the first time." Anna rolled her eyes. "You don't have to worry so much, you know? It's not like I'm going to feel anything after you freeze me."_

_"I know..." Elsa smiled sheepishly. "I just... wanted you to be sure that you knew I would get you out as soon as I possibly could." _

_"I already know, silly." Anna chuckled, wrapping her sister in one last hug. "You'll always come for me."_

_Elsa closed her eyes, burying her face into her younger sister's hair. "Yeah."_

_"You'll be there when I wake up?"_

_Elsa's grip only tightened around Anna's form. "Always. I promise."_

_There really wasn't much to do after that but to climb into the machine. Anna supposed that she should be a little scared, but it would have probably just been wasted energy._

_Besides, she needed to smile for Elsa, so that her sister wouldn't worry._

_And so she did._

_"See you soon... Elsa."_

* * *

_The second time she awoke was surprisingly more unpleasant than the first time round._

_"Oh... oh... okay. Cold, cold, cold. It wasn't this cold the first time around."_

_"Hey, hey. Oh... hey." Warm arms wrapped around Anna's cold frame, which she gratefully collapsed into. "You're okay now. You're okay."_

_"Elsa?"_

_"Who else could it be?"_

_"Oh, okay. Okay. Great." Anna breathed out a shaky breath. "Whoo... really though, why is it so cold?"_

_"Sorry, sorry." Elsa's arms wrapped tighter around Anna's frame. "Might be because we delayed waking you up quite a bit."_

_"Huh." Anna would normally dismiss the statement, but something in Elsa's voice made her ask. "Exactly how long did you delay?"_

_"Uh... well..." _

_"...Elsa? How many years?"_

_"Well... it's been twenty years." _

_"Oh... okay. So it's no - TWENTY YEARS? ELSA!"_

_"It was complicated!"_

_"TWENTY YEARS!"_

_"Well, there was some problems with company funds, and then there was a war and then a economic depression..." Elsa sighed. "Look, there really just wasn't any good time to wake you up until now."_

_"Argh... okay, okay." Anna took a few deep, calming breaths. "Right. Whatever. I'll hound you about that a bit more later. For now, I want a warm blanket and some hot chocolate with those tiny marshmallow things. If they still exist in this far yonder world of __**twenty years later**__, of course."_

_Unable to help herself, Elsa laughed. "Yes. Yes, they do. Some things just don't change."_

_"...Was that an indirect jab at me, sister dearest?"_

* * *

_It was a little strange at the least, to see Anderson so old and to see him bring in a son in his teens to greet both Anna and Elsa. _

_They did the usual platitudes. Anderson was as prim but sweet as usual, but the son seemed a little freaked out. Well, Anna didn't really blame him. It wasn't everyday you saw a frozen person come to life. Although, he did seem a little more comfortable with Elsa - Anna guessed that he had much more time to get used to the idea of an unaging woman. _

_It was during the encounter however, that Anna realized something very important._

_"So... I guess. We'll only have each other from now on?"_

_Elsa glanced over at Anna, her smile unusually sad. "Yeah... seems so."_

_"Hmm."_

_"... Anna? Do you think, you'll... regret it?"_

_The question wasn't entirely unexpected. But it still saddened Anna that Elsa still doubted her choice. She shook her head, reaching over to squeeze Elsa's hand. "No. I don't think I will."_

_Elsa didn't say anything, only squeezed Anna's hand gently back. _

_Anderson passed away while Anna was sleeping for her third cycle. When she woke up, Anderson's teenage son was the one who passed her his father's parting letter - only, the son wasn't so teenage anymore, more of middle-aged adult._

_Anna was uncharacteristically quiet that day, but Elsa understood, even if it pained her to see Anna so._

_The next day though, Anna was back to her regular, cheerful self._

* * *

_After that, it became a regular cycle in which Anna lived with Elsa for five odd years and then went back into freeze sleep for ten years or more each time. Although, after a few cycles, Elsa began to call it cryogenic sleep. Apparently, technology had advanced far enough that what they were doing became more of a believable theory rather than a crazy fantasy. Not that anyone else had successfully done it, of course._

_Sometimes, Anderson's descendents would appear to see them. For some reason, it became a long-standing family tradition to serve the woman who didn't age. But they weren't always there - Elsa had specifically mandated that if anyone in the family didn't want to serve her, well, screw family tradition. They were free to do whatever they wanted._

_In and out of the world as she was, Anna didn't see the world through all its changes. But of what she did see, some she liked, and others she didn't. She did think that rock music was rad, emo rock not so much, the walkman was so, so cool and so was the iPhone, kinda, except it sometimes distracted Elsa from her, and the social media thing was kind of creepy, yet kind of cool, yet still kind of creepy._

_What she didn't like the most though, was the growing lack of snow in the city the more it advanced with time._

_"You know, we have a huge conference room in the building. I can easily make snow there." Elsa commented as she listened, admittedly a little amused, at Anna's rant._

_"Oh, I know." Anna huffed, plopping herself down on one of the many couches in Elsa's office. "But... as much as liked... and still like our midnight jaunts, there's something about... the first snow that's so... magical. Here in the city, it all just melts into the ground and disappears."_

_"Mmm... I get what you mean." Elsa hummed in agreement. "I'll see what I can do. But for tomorrow, let's take a break and go to the countryside for a bit. Sure to be a magical blanket of first snow out there."_

_"Really?"_

_"Uhuh."_

_"Yippee!"_

_Elsa regretted that she didn't move fast enough to dodge Anna's launch at her in time. But then again, the smile that Anna had on her face made it more than worth it._

* * *

_Anna did forget about her complaint about the snow to Elsa after a while. It hadn't been a rant that Anna thought Elsa would take seriously beyond the initial pacification - which Anna did get with a whole week trip out to a beautiful mountain range where Elsa spent glorious hours teaching her how to snowboard._

_But then, she was in for quite a surprise when she awoke from the cycle after that._

_"Mmm... good morning, Elsa." Anna greeted her sister as it had become custom for her to. "What strange new world have you brought me to this time?"_

_But Elsa only laughed, as if waiting for Anna to notice something obvious. Which she did._

_"Oh... wait... did you do a bit of redecorating?"_

_Elsa laughed, "close, but not quite. Come on, it's beautiful outside today!"_

_Anna supposed she should have expected it. But it caught her entirely by surprise as Elsa pulled her out of what Anna had presumed at first to be the balcony Elsa had in her office. Instead, it led out straight into an open field - an open field covered with freshly-fallen snow._

_"...What? Where is this. Elsa?"_

_"Well, you were complaining about the city. So I thought us moving to the country-side might be better." Elsa grinned as she tossed Anna a pair of gloves. "So, what do you think of the new place."_

_Honestly, Anna had no better offering than, "it's wonderful!" But she did have an idea of the first thing to do to start off this new cycle of life. "Hey, Elsa. Do you wanna build a snowman?"_

_And Elsa smiled, "You bet I do."_

* * *

_They'd lived out the rest of their lives together here. Of course, Elsa always headed back to the city whenever it was time for Anna to sleep. But that was another thing entirely. It was here that they would play numerous computer games whenever they came out, no matter how ridiculous the game-play would be. It was here that they would watch the cooking channels and try to make whatever new-fangled popular recipe came up, usually with hilarious results. It was here that they would visit the tiny town nearby, popping into cafes and shops, usually in a ridiculous get-up for the sake of disguise, just to see the new fashions that people came up with, and to see the perplexed expressions on peoples' faces as they stared at what Anna and Elsa were wearing. _

_And it was here they would always go out and play in the freshly fallen snow. And whether or not their snowman building efforts were successful, heaven could attest to the fact that they would always try._

* * *

But something was wrong this time round. Something obviously wrong. In fact, Anna had already sensed that something was wrong during their last cycle together. Elsa had seemed a little on the edge. Actually, a lot on edge. She kept Anna busy, and there was distinct lack of anything news related in their house. All the news channels were deleted, any newspaper subscriptions they once had Anna found out were now terminated. And whenever she tried to question Elsa about it, her sister always slid around it, asking Anna why she was suddenly so interested in the news when she'd never been so before. The visits into the town nearby also stopped. It was as if Elsa was trying to isolate Anna away from the outside world.

And of course, the strangest of all. Elsa had insisted that last cycle to lend after less than 2 years, being all dodgy about the reason. But... after so long, Anna could trust her sister not to leave her again, right? Maybe Elsa wanted to do some kind of surprise for her, like she had when they'd first moved to place many, many years ago.

And so, Anna had did as Elsa asked.

But now, as she lay alone on the floor, Elsa nowhere in sight, she wondered if she should regret that decision.

No, no. She couldn't think like that. Elsa wouldn't have left her alone for no reason. All Anna had to do was to figure out that reason.

And she certainly couldn't do it lying down like this.

She pushed herself up again, taking in her surroundings, trying to see beyond the depressing fact that she must have been left alone here for at least quite some time. "Come on, Anna. Think, think. What would be a good reason Elsa wouldn't be here when you woke up?"

Still, it seemed that it wasn't only their house that had been abandoned. Stepping outside, Anna looked out to where the nearest town had been. But in the place where the quaint town she was used to had been was now quite a respectable cosmopolitan sprawl. It seemed that in the time that Anna had been asleep, the small town down the hill and a walk away seemed to have grown into quite a respectable city - or at least, it had been. From what she could see, it seemed as if the whole city had been left to ruin. The buildings were but shells of themselves, metal frames sticking out in crazy contortions where they once held blocks of concrete. Any colours that had been were now bleached pale from the unrelenting sun above. Confused, Anna stepped outside, watching the lazily drifting snow settle across a land of endless white.

It was oddly beautiful.

Opening her mouth, Anna took in a deep breath, only to accidentally breathe in a piece of snow. Except, it tasted nothing like snow. "Oh! Ugh... Gross!"

Anna gagged, spending a good few seconds trying to clear the taste from her mouth. When she was done, she stared down at the soft white covering on the ground in disgust. "Argh... did snow mutate in the future or something? Why is it like this?"

Bending down, Anna picked up a handful of the white substance, trying to figure out what was wrong with it. It didn't melt away into water like regular snow did, but rather, it dusted her fingers with a grey, chalky residue. Rather like...

"Wait... this isn't snow... it's..."

Maybe she could blame it on the cryogenic process slowing her brain cells. But hell, she did feel quite the idiot now.

"...ash."

Standing up, Anna stared at the barren white world around her. Her heart was pounding and her breath was short. But there was no mistaking where in the point of time she was at now.

"I'm at the end of the world."

She knew where she had to go.

* * *

_Anna took in a deep breath of the cool fresh air as she stood atop of the hill, looking down rolling hills and icy streams all painted in the brisk colours of winter. "Oh... it's so beautiful."_

_"More beautiful than me?" _

_Anna laughed squeezing the hand that had slid into hers. "Oh Elsa, nothing could be more beautiful than you. But you get what I mean."_

_Elsa grinned and looked out at the landscape sprawled out before her. "Yeah. I do."_

_"Mmm..." Anna sighed, "You know, I've been thinking-"_

_"Always a dangerous thing."_

_"Hey!" Anna gave Elsa a playful nudge, causing the elder to laugh. "Anyway, as I was saying. I was thinking about well... if only we could do this forever."_

_Elsa blinked, "well, what's stopping us from doing so?"_

_"Well, for one thing, you __**are**__ aging. Just a lot slower than most people."_

_It was true. Elsa now looked like she was in her early thirties, although it had taken a millennium for her to do so. "Yes, I know that."_

_"Well, you know how old people tend to grow weak, and they can't do a lot of things anymore? Maybe one day you won't be able to wield your powers like you used to... and well..." She didn't need to say anymore. They both knew what would happen after that._

_"Mmm... I guess you're right. But I think it's still a little early to be thinking about that." Elsa grinned, nudging her sister. "I'm still sprig and fit, even in my old age."_

_But Anna didn't react to the joke. Instead, she shrugged. "Well, there are other possible scenarios in which the worst could happen."_

_Elsa raised an eyebrow. "Why all these somber thoughts? What happened to my airheaded, always positive sister?"_

_"Well... old age I guess." Anna chuckled. She had grown older, even if it was in bits and pieces. "Puts mature, somber thoughts into my head. Well, not really. What I was really thinking of was well, what we would do if the end of the world happened."_

_"The end of the world?" Elsa blinked._

_"Well, it's a possibility." Anna shrugged, "and as powerful as you are, I wonder if you'd be able to survive that."_

_"I guess that depends on what brings about the end of the world." Elsa hummed, "I guess I might be able to escape most possibilities by well, doing what we've been doing to you. Freezing myself."_

_"So you'll cozy up beside me in my machine?" Anna laughed, "sounds kind of nice."_

_"Mmm... Although I wonder if there'd be electricity at the end of the world. The machine has quite a substantial store of power to power itself in the case of a electricity short, but that would run out eventually. No idea what would happen after that. At best we would both defrost and be subject to whatever caused the end of the world."_

_"Oh, augh. Probably not a good idea then." _

_"Probably not."_

_"Mmm... I think though, that if it were possible, I would like the spend the end of the world... standing right here."_

_"What do you mean?"_

_"I mean... the two of us together, standing right here, staring right in the face of the end of the world. Kind of cool don't you think?" _

_"You mean you'd like the two of us to die here?"_

_"Well, no. I mean. It could be the two of us becoming ice statues, standing right here, for well, however long we last as ice statues." Anna gestured around them. "It's be pretty interesting if like, aliens came and found us and the next time we woke we'd be on an UFO! Or maybe we'd become some sort of archeological find for the next generation of creatures that inhabit the earth after it recovered from some great disaster or something! Or-"_

_"Okay, okay, I get the picture." Elsa held out her hands as if to stop Anna's thoughts in their track. "But easier said than done. I don't even know if I can freeze myself in the first place. And if I do, what about you? What if I freeze myself and then you automatically unfreeze? What if the end of the world suddenly came while you were still sleeping inside the machine and I couldn't get to you in time? There's so many factors and possibilities to think about."_

_"True." Anna shrugged, "well, like you said, it's probably still some while away. And anyway, I'll just take whatever comes. It'd just... you know... it'd be nice."_

_"Mmm..." Elsa sighed, gazing out at the scenery before her. "Yeah, I guess it would."_

_Anna grinned, pulling her sister into a hug. "Hey, we'll figure it out somehow, right?"_

_Her face buried into her sister's shoulder, Anna didn't see the look of determination that crossed her sister's face. "Yeah. We'll figure it out... somehow."_

* * *

It was getting a little harder to breath with each step, but she made it.

Elsa was there waiting - standing at the top of the hill, overlooking the gorgeous valley below. She stood a little to the side, a gap left for someone to stand beside her. It was just like Anna had wanted.

She stepped up to her sister's side. The landscape had changed somewhat over the many years. Rivers no longer flowed. Instead, it was more a mess of rubble and stones.

It was still beautiful.

She turned to look at her sister, at the hand outstretched, ready for her to grasp and then she shook her head and sighed. "Oh, Elsa. There were probably easier ways to do this. What if I didn't figure it out? But I guess there were many circumstances and problems you had to work with that I don't know about."

Anna looked back down at the ground. "I guess I could rant about the fact that you could have just told me what you were doing instead of acting all that mysterious during that last, short cycle. But, I guess you wanted it to be a surprise, or something."

She took one last look at Elsa's face, glittering ice-blue in the sun, her frosted eyes cast forever outwards, staring at the horizon. "Well, here goes nothing."

She took Elsa's hand.

In the midst of the familiar cold creeping up her arm, travelling through the rest of her body, she thought that she could hear Elsa's voice in her mind.

_"Took you long enough."_

_"Hey! You're the one who set up this whole elaborate scheme."_

_"So I did. Do you like it?"_

_"Yeah... I do. And Elsa?"_

_"Yeah?"_

_"I love you."_

_"I love you too."_

* * *

_'Sunshine cannot bleach the snow,_

_Nor time unmake what poets know._

_Have you eyes to find the five_

_Which five hundred did survive?'_

- R.W. Emerson -

- END -


End file.
